A Tale From Westside
by sew1996
Summary: Fitz and Olivia are both teachers at Westside Academy. Will they both overcome their differences, or will they continue to fight? Lets find out!
1. Chapter 1

_It's clear you didn't study for this_ , Fitz scribbled across the top of the test. He took a bite of his sandwich before continuing his red pen. _I suggest dropping this course, if you cannot draw something as menial as a Punnett Square._ At the end of his message he wrote the student's failing grade.

A knock interrupted his grading session.

"Come in."

The door swung open, and a woman stepped across the threshold. She was dressed in business attire, a white blouse complimenting her dark slacks. Her hair was in a tight bun, and she had the slightest trace of makeup on. She couldn't have been more than thirty-five.

He waited for her to speak. When she remained silent, he put a hand to his head, pulling off his reading glasses. "What do you want?" he asked.

"Are you Fitzgerald Grant?" He gestured to his nameplate. She looked at the block lettering of his name before meeting his eyes. She took a step forward and held out her hand.

"I'm Olivia Pope."He didn't take her proffered hand, and she dropped it to her side.

He didn't want to rush the brunette, but his planning block was coming to an end and he desperately needed to finish grading the tests before his next class. "What can I do for you?"

"You should have received an e-mail earlier this morning from the principal. The English department is renovating their entire first floor; all of the teachers with offices there are being relocated for the month." She walked to the edge of the desk, placing her fingertips against the cool metal top. "I'm going to be your office-mate." She gave him an uncertain smile.

"No," he muttered.

"No, what?"

"I'm sorry, but that's just not happening."

Her hands shot to her hips. "You're not really in a position to argue, Mr. Grant. The department has issued the notice, and the principal has already approved and made the necessary arrangements."

"Look here, Ms. Pope, I'm not one to be trifled with. I am the best biology professor at this damn academy and I will not be sharing my office with anyone." He picked his pen up and grabbed the next test. When he finished failing another student, he looked up. "You're still here."

"Listen, Grant. I don't like this any more than you do. I've heard all the rumors about what an ass you are, and you're not doing anything to make me think differently. Let's just hope your credentials can get you out of this one."

The door slammed shut, and Fitz released a breath he didn't realize he had been holding.

/

The autumn air bit at Fitz, and he hastened to zip up his jacket. His office was on the far side of campus, and each morning he had to make the chilly trek from the parking lot.

It was a beautiful time at Westside Academy; the leaves that were still clinging onto the trees were a deep shade of red, contrasting with the gray stone of the academic buildings. By the time he reached his office, his cheeks and ears were a slight shade of red. He was feeling better than he had in weeks, but as soon as he reached the door of his office his mood made an abrupt turn for the worse. While he hadn't completely forgotten about Ms. Pope, he hadn't thought she would be ballsy enough to actually move her stuff into his office.

But there it was, all laid out, perfectly organized. She had split the room in two, her desk running parallel to his. She hadn't touched any of his things, but he felt violated all the same.

It wasn't long after he had finished making his tea that he heard her coming down the hallway, her heels clacking against the tiled floor. She held a steaming cup of coffee in her hand, and a book in the other.

"Good morning," she greeted, setting both items down on her desk. Fitz glared as she settled down and began to prepare for her first class. She scrawled a few notes into the book before noticing that Fitz hadn't looked away.

"What?"

"I can't believe you actually moved your stuff in," he told her. She gave him an off-handed shrug and took a sip of her coffee. "Don't get too comfortable," he warned. "I'm going to talk to the principal today and see if we can't fix this disaster."

She slammed her book against the table. "Look, Grant, I don't like this any more than you do, but at least I've accepted that we're stuck together until the first of November. Believe me, I am counting the days until I can go back to my own damn office. At least I'm trying to make this work. Would it kill you to be a little nicer?"

"You invaded my office without my permission, and you expect me to be a little nicer?" He was standing, now, his hands clenched against the edge of his desk. "Don't take offense to this, Pope, but I'm not entirely sure why they paired you up with me. For God's sake, I have a M.S. in biology and you have, what, a B.A. in education? I worked my ass off to get to where I am now, and I earned the right to have this office all to myself."

She leapt to her feet, her chair flying behind her and crashing into the wall. "Whatever you're trying to say, just say it."

"What I teach is more important. Science requires a rigid lesson plan, and I make sure that my students are the best in the school. What do you do? Sit around and have 'discussions' on a book I bet half your students didn't even read. Not that you could tell the difference. English classes just teach students how to successfully bullshit their way to an A."

Their faces were inches apart.

"Did you fail English 101, Grant? Huh? Is that what this is really about? You don't know the first thing about literature, so don't pretend you do." The eight o'clock bell rang, pulling the two from their argument. Classes began in thirty minutes, and students were beginning to come into the building. Fitz gathered his papers and left the room.

 _*waves* Hi! I'm not a new scandal viewer by any means, but I'm new to the whole writing gig. If you'd like me continue just send me a quick review. I know this one is pretty short. :)_ ~S


	2. Chapter 2

"Mr. Grant, come in." The principal gestured to one of his mahogany chairs. "Please, have a seat." Fitz set his briefcase on the floor and took the offered seat, opposite of Smith. "I could ask what's bothering you, but I think I already know.

"Yes, I'm sure you do."

"Well, let's hear it."

Fitz leaned forward. "I don't mean to sound rude, but why did you offer up my office in the first place? I thought we agreed that the office was to be mine, and mine alone. You know that I don't work well with others invading my personal space."

"Oh, Fitz."Smith chuckled. "I know we agreed that you would have that office all to yourself. And you will, in a month's time. Until then, I suggest that you learn how to share your office with Dr. Pope."

He couldn't help himself, "Doctor?"

Smith frowned. "We are very fortunate to have Dr. Pope in our team of educators. She's one of the best in her field, and I'm sure she will make an excellent head of the English department." Fitz felt himself redden. Not only had he made fun of her chosen profession, he had insulted the extent of her education, which far surpassed his.

"I know you have a difficult time getting along with your colleagues, but I had hoped that you and Dr. Pope would be different. I paired you two up because you're very similar. You are both heading your respective departments, and your students are some of the best in our school." The headmaster stood up and began to gather the papers off his desk, stuffing them in his briefcase. "As I already told your office-mate, this is only for a month. You two can't possibly hate each other yet; it hasn't even been twenty-four hours. Now, is that all? We have to get to the department meeting."

Fitz nodded, dazed. He knew he should be trying to convince the headmaster to arrange a different office for her, but he was completely speechless. He had completely underestimated his colleague and insulted her to her face. To make matters worse, she hadn't even corrected him. He certainly wasn't helping his reputation.

/

Olivia settled herself in front of the oak table, preparing herself for the upcoming head of department meeting. She pulled out her folder and reviewed the dates she had written down. This would be her first official meeting with the other heads, and she wanted to be as prepared as possible.

She had just moved to the area for the job, and she was determined to make a great impression. As her colleagues filed into the room, her breath caught in her throat. She had successfully managed to avoid Grant all day long, but she had forgotten that he was head of the biology department. Anger pulsed through her veins.

She managed to appear passive as he entered the room. He didn't glance her way until he was settled in his own seat. He gave her a small nod before focusing on his own notes. Why was he being so civil? Olivia's brow furrowed in confusion, but she didn't have long to dwell on his actions. The meeting started minutes later, with Principal Smith giving the opening remarks.

"I'd like to welcome our newest member of our faculty, Dr. Olivia Pope." All heads turned to her, except Grant's. He was studying a knot in the wood. "She is heading our English department, and I for one cannot wait to see what she will contribute to Westside Academy."

The meeting progressed in a timely fashion, each member going over their plans for the school year, along with some of the events each department was coordinating. It was soon Olivia's turn. She stood up and cleared her throat.

"It is a great honor to be working for Westside Academy. I could not ask for a better job. I love working with the students. That being said, I've gone ahead and outlined some of the events I hope to coordinate this year. All of these event days are flexible, save for one." She passed out a schedule of the events. "I wanted my students to be exposed to all sorts of literature, and I thought that having some poetry and prose readings from real writers would help inspire them. On the twentieth of October, John Green is coming to give us a reading of his novel and answer the students questions." There was a round of applause.

"There's only one problem."

She knew that voice. He met her eye this time. "What would that problem be, Mr. Grant?" She didn't mean to sound so frustrated.

"I've already scheduled a field trip for that day. My students and I are going aboard the academy's ship to view marine life and conduct experiments."

"Surely that can be re-arranged," Olivia argued. "This is an important event, and it means a lot to the students."

Grant glowered at her. "I scheduled this trip months ago. It's already been put through, and the administration has approved and reserved the ship for me that day. I can't cancel my expedition just because you want to have a poetry reading."

"Green is a novelist, not a poet. And he agreed to that day, and that day specifically. I cannot ask one of the greatest authors to re-schedule because one of the science teachers wants to go fishing."

"It doesn't matter who it is that's coming, or what sort of experiment I'm doing on the boat. The fact of the matter is, I got my event scheduled first. So even if you scheduled the president to come have a talk with the students, my event would take precedence."

Olivia opened her mouth to argue, but Smith interrupted her. "Fitz, you're being ridiculous. Olivia has a point. The students would be excited to have a question and answer session with Green. If she can't get him to agree to another date, then we'll simply have to reschedule your field trip."

/

"You won this round," Fitz said, settling at his desk. Pope gave him a nonchalant shrug, her nose stuck in a book. "My field trip's been scheduled for this Friday. Not only is it extremely short notice, but I'm now without a chaperone." He waited for a response, an apology, perhaps, but he didn't get any.

Two could play at that game. If he had to rearrange his schedule for a field trip he had planned at the end of the last school year, she had to as well. He smirked to himself. "It wouldn't be fair to the parents, to ask them to come up and help," he began. The change in his voice startled her out of her reading.

"I'm sorry." She didn't sound like it.

Fitz reached across his desk, grabbing her schedule from the stack of papers. He pretended to study it. "You're done teaching early on Friday."

She set her book down and took off her reading glasses. "What are you getting at?"

"You're coming with me. If I have to rearrange my schedule for you, then you have to do the same for me."

She gave him a doubtful glance. "With thirty students and more than a dozen science teachers, you can't find a single chaperone?" He shrugged, waiting for her to argue against him. "When I said I was here for the children, I meant it. I want them to go on this field trip, and if that means that I'll be stuck with you for the entirety of a Friday afternoon, so be it."

She glanced down at the clock. 5:30. She got up and began to gather her things. Fitz followed in suite. "We'll meet by the front of the school at noon on Friday. It'll be cold on the ocean, so unless you want to freeze I recommend bringing a jacket."

"Okay. I'll be there, don't worry." She gave him an unexpected smile before turning to leave.

Damn it. She had won.

/

Olivia was excited. It was Westside Academy's first football game, and she had managed to get a ticket. Not only did she enjoy watching football, but it was also the perfect opportunity for her to get to know some of her colleagues. She had moved to the area just a few weeks before school started, and she had been so busy fixing her apartment and preparing for school that she hadn't even thought to meet the faculty before the first day of school.

It was slightly chillier than normal and, even though she had brought a warm jacket, she was still colder than she would have liked. While she waited for the game to begin, she ended up buying some hot chocolate from the PTA. While she sipped on the warm liquid, she allowed herself to socialize a bit with the parents and faculty, trying her hardest to not sound awkward. Had it really been that long since she had last had a normal, adult conversation?

After excusing herself from the mingling, she made her way up the ramp and into the stands. She stopped abruptly, causing the people behind her to barely avoid walking into her. She couldn't believe it. Grant was in the seat next to hers.

She let out a frustrated sigh. She couldn't escape him, no matter where she went. She leaned against the railing, contemplating if it was even worth going back to her seat. She wanted to enjoy the football game, not argue with him. Before she could turn to leave, someone caught her arm.

"It's nice to see you're taking an interest in our sports program, Doctor."

"I love watching football," she said. Smith was behind her, preventing her from leaving.

He gave her a smile and let go of her arm. "Good! I was worried that you wouldn't want to stay once you saw Fitz. Come on, let me walk you up to your spot." She glanced back up into the stands, only to find that Fitz was watching her. She couldn't back down now.

She took her time climbing up the bleachers. When she got to the row, she hoped that Smith would take the lead and sit next to Grant. He gave her a gentle nudge, encouraging her onward, in front of him. She approached Fitz and hesitantly took her seat next to him on the metal bench, uncertain if she should even say anything.

"Fitz," Smith greeted. He took a seat next to Olivia. Grant nodded in greeting. Smith ran his hands along his arms, trying to warm up. "Quite the weather we're having. It's only October, and it feels like November!" His small talk did nothing to help the awkward silence.

After a few minutes of the prolonged silence, Smith got to his feet. "Well, I'm glad you were able to make it Olivia, I know that it was short notice. I hope you enjoy watching the game!"

"Thanks," she was dreading being alone with Fitz. Was it possible that he wanted to simply enjoy the game, without bickering? The final sip of her drink was cold and entirely too sweet. She set the empty cup beneath her and, now that she was free of excuses to avoid Grant, turned to meet his glance.

 _The chapters will probably be about this length most of the time. I have about 3/4 of the story written already. :) 8 days until TGIT! I'm pumped! Hope you enjoy. ~S_


	3. Chapter 3

"I think Smith is trying too hard." His tone of voice caught her by surprise. He sounded annoyed, but not angry. And for once, his irritation was turned to someone other than herself. "He's looking over here again."

"Huh?"

"Did you really think it was a coincidence that our seats are next to each other? I'm sure he did this."

"I didn't even know there was a football game until this morning. Smith invited me to it," Olivia said. "He told me that the game was sold out, but by the end of the day he managed to find a ticket for me. I guess that was his way of making sure we were able to get seats next to each other."

"I wish he would just mind his own business," Grant complained. "He doesn't need to constantly encourage us to get along. We're not children."

"I think it's nice of him," Olivia said, defending the principal. "He could have a bigger problem with us, but he doesn't. He's just trying to have all of his faculty get along." Grant gave her an off-handed shrug. They were doing so good, not arguing, and here she was, basically encouraging a fight about Smith. She tried to redeem herself. "But I do agree that he doesn't have to be so forward about it. Having us sit next to each other won't help us solve anything. In fact, it could even make matters worse."

"I just wish that there was a way to get him out off our backs. I have enough pressure as it is, I don't need the principal snooping around my office."

Olivia didn't know what else to say. The only way that Smith would leave them alone was if they actually got along, and she was certain that was never going to happen. Deciding that it was better to change topics than to leave the conversation hanging, she asked, "Do we always have games on Wednesday nights?"

"Most of the games at the beginning of the season are on Wednesday's. When we get closer to the championships, the schedule switches to Saturday's so more parents can attend."

"Do you come to a lot of the games?"

"Most of them, yeah. It's nice to see the kids focused on something other than academics." There was a moment of silence before he cleared his throat. "About these past few days, I'm sorry." He looked embarrassed. "I don't do well sharing my office with anybody, so please don't take it personally. I, uh, also want to apologize for saying you only had a B.A. in education. I was wrong to assume."

Olivia found herself blushing. Before she could say anything in response, the speakers came to life, blasting music as the players ran onto the field. Their mascot, the Westside wolf, encouraged everyone to get on their feet. The crowd went wild. Olivia watched as Grant stood up and cheered for the team. He was surprisingly school spirited; she hadn't even realized he was wearing a Westside Academy jacket.

She mirrored his actions, allowing herself to let her guard down. Now that the game had started, she wouldn't have to keep up this conversation with Grant, nor would she have to acknowledge that his apology had affected her more than she would have liked.

By the time the cheerleaders leapt onto the field for the halftime show, Olivia was already hoarse. Homewood Academy was a tough team to beat; in the opening play, they had gotten a touchdown, and had stayed slightly ahead the entire time. Every time the Westside wolves managed to get close to the field goal, the other team successfully blocked their play. It was excruciating to watch.

Grant cleared his throat, bringing her attention to him. "What do you think of the game so far?" She glanced at him, then down to where Smith was sitting. The principal quickly turned his head away, pretending like he hadn't just been studying the two office-mates.

"It looks like we're having to put up a fight," Olivia said. She wasn't entirely sure if he was actually interested in having a conversation or if he was simply trying to put on an act for Smith.

"We generally don't face any of the good teams until at least mid-October. I'm not sure why we're facing Homewood so early, they're one of our biggest competitors. They won the championship a few years back, but two years ago the old coach retired, and the new one hasn't done much to bring them back up against Cumberland."

"Oh," Olivia murmured. At least Westside wasn't terrible; she didn't think she could stand the thought of supporting a consistently bad team. It was still halftime, and now that Olivia didn't have anything to distract her with, she was beginning to notice just how cold it was outside. It wouldn't be worth it to get a hot drink; the lines were long, and she'd just end up missing the next quarter of the game.

She readjusted her jacket, trying to get it to cover more of her. Grant seemed to notice and, after a peek down at Smith, offered her his jacket. She would have objected, but she was too cold to care where the jacket came from.

As she slipped her arms through the clothing, she caught a whiff of his cologne. It clung to the jacket, enveloping her senses. Had he always smelled like this? She had been too focused on hating him to notice anything else.

The end of the game came as a surprise for everyone; Westside pulled ahead at the last minute, getting a field goal and winning the game by a two points. As Olivia and Fitz parted, she handed him his jacket back and thanked him.

He gave her a small smile as he put his jacket back on. "See you tomorrow, Doctor." Olivia fought back a blush, reminding herself that he was just acting. Tomorrow he would be the same inconsiderate ass.

/

Olivia checked her watch for the umpteenth time. It was already 12:14. Grant had told her to meet him outside of the main building at noon. The blue activity bus was already parked along the curb, and the students were milling about, waiting for their professor. The bus driver was getting angry; he had to go pick up kindergartners at the observatory at two, and Grant was cutting into his schedule.

She hadn't planned on arriving early, but her students had finished their tests well before the scheduled switch of classes, so she had her assistant remain behind to supervise. Olivia had changed out of her professional attire, and was now dressed in jeans and a hoodie.

If she was going out on a boat, she didn't want the sea spray to ruin any of her professional outfits. She knew she would regret it later, but she had also taken her hair out of its bun. It flowed freely down her back, the ends curling as the breeze played with them.

She tugged nervously on her sweatshirt. What if he didn't show up? This field trip was supposed to take them well into the night; how would these children get home?

She let out a sigh of relief as she saw Grant rounding the corner. He was well aware that he was late, but instead of hurrying to the bus, he continued his slow pace.

Olivia let out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. The students had spotted their teacher as well, and began to climb into the bus. Grant mumbled a hello to her before giving the bus driver brief directions to the marina.

"Nice of you to finally get here," Olivia murmured as he brushed by. She followed him into the vehicle, noticing that the only free spot was next to him. Deciding not to dwell on it too much, she slid into seat.

After giving Fitz a glare in the rear view mirror, the driver started up the bus. Within five minutes they were on I-95, headed northeast toward Portland. The bus wasn't the smoothest vehicle to take turns in, and whenever the driver went around a curve, Olivia's shoulder touched Fitz's. She shouldn't have let herself, but she blushed each time it happened.

Her reddened cheeks went seemingly unnoticed by her colleague, who was intently staring down at his notes. Olivia tried to read some of it, but she couldn't focus without feeling carsick. He turned his attention away from the notes briefly, finding Olivia staring.

"What is it?" he asked.

"You never told me why we're going on this field trip. If you expect me to be a proper chaperone, you should tell me more than just to wear a jacket. I'd like to help the students out as much as possible."

"Well, you shouldn't help them." Olivia opened her mouth to protest, but Fitz stopped her by holding a hand up. "That's not what I meant. Their first major assignment was to write an experiment and to perform it. This was supposed to take place a little later in the semester, but since Smith moved the field trip up, they had to start and finish the assignment this week."

"So what are they doing, exactly?"

"Anything. I left it up to them. I only asked that they make sure that we had all the materials in the lab. A few of them are conducting pH experiments, which is utterly ridiculous; there won't be anything to compare, since we only have litmus paper." He let out a chuckle. "The others are a bit more original, thankfully. I'm hoping a few of them will be able to pull off an A."

"Do you take your students out a lot?"

"Occasionally. It's nice for them to get some experience outside of the classroom. Not many of the other professors like to go on field trips, which is a shame. Then again, I can't imagine why an English professor would take her students out." He noted her annoyed expression. "I didn't mean for you to be offended by that, sorry."

She was too surprised by his apology to actually be annoyed. "No, it's okay," she assured. "A lot of English professors don't know what to do with their students, to get them some outside experience. Most of the time it's easier to get an author to come to the school than to visit a publishing house."

"I can understand that," he said. "Aside from going to the ocean or forest for an experiment, there isn't much for a science professor to do outside of a laboratory."

"I can't remember ever going on a field trip with any of my professors," Olivia said. "Except my art history teacher in high school; we went to a lot of the local museums. But that doesn't really count; she was terrible." Fitz let out a chuckle, and she smiled in return.

"When I went to Scotsboro Academy, it was a little bit easier to go on field trips. We had a lot of historical sites on the east coast."

Before Olivia could ask him about his childhood, the bus came to a stop in front of the marina gate. They couldn't proceed until Grant talked to the security guard. He stood up, and Olivia leapt out of the way so he could get by. After a short conversation with the guard, the bus was waved through. Fitz stayed up by the bus driver, giving him directions to their specific boat.

When the bus parked in front of a small yacht, Olivia was surprised. She hadn't really known what to expect. The boat looked large enough to comfortably fit all of the students, and give them enough room to conduct their science experiments.

While Grant went ahead to talk to the captain, Olivia made sure that all the students safely got off the bus; a good number of them were carrying boxes laden with materials for their projects. Olivia followed after the last student, pausing to thank the bus driver and apologize for making him late to his next pick up.

As soon as she stepped off the bus, the salty air invaded her nose. She took a moment to appreciate the site of the marina before going to find Fitz. He was giving a speech to the students about proper behavior. She waited until he had finished before approaching him and giving him an encouraging smile.

"You ready?" he asked, motioning for her to board. She gave him a small nod.

Together, they brought up the rear, making sure that the students didn't have any trouble getting over the gap between the dock and the yacht.

 _A/N: Are you guys liking it so far? I appreciate all the reviews! :) 7 days, Gladiators! #TGIT_


	4. Chapter 4

_Hi! Here is a new chapter! Enjoy!_

Since the football game, Fitz wasn't sure how to act around Olivia. When he wasn't constantly arguing with her, she was actually sort of nice. He still hated that he had to share an office with her, but she was making it relatively easy. Now that he didn't have as much to be angry about, he wasn't sure where he stood with his colleague.

Even though he had told her not to, she had gone around helping the students. She didn't seem to know much about what they were doing, but she helped the best she could. He eventually reminded her that these experiments were to be done without any outside aid, and she went to sit with the captain. She and the old man seemed to take a liking to one another; he heard her musical laughter every few minutes.

Most of the students were finishing up their experiments, but there were a few perfectionists that were still only midway through their testing. He encouraged these students to finish within the next twenty minutes, or he would cut them off. The boat had to start heading back to shore.

He made his way over to the captain, surprised when he didn't see Olivia sitting next to him. He found her at the bow of the boat, admiring the vast ocean. "When did you come out here?" he asked.

"A while ago," she said, not turning around. He hesitated, uncertain if he should attempt to have a conversation with her; he had forced her to accompany him on this field trip, and her tone of voice wasn't exactly positive.

"Are you okay?" he finally asked, moving to stand next to her. She didn't answer. He cleared his throat and tried again. "Anything in particular you were looking at?" She blinked, startled out of her thoughts.

"I thought I saw some dolphins over there." She pointed to the right of the boat, answering only his latter question. "But I don't really know," she backpedaled. "I just thought I spotted some fins. Are there even dolphins in Maine?"

Fitz frowned. What was going on with her? "There are dolphins," he assured her. "But you could have seen a whale."

"Oh."

"Olivia, are you sure you're okay?" He hadn't meant to use her first name.

"Yes, I'm fine." She gave him a small smile to prove her point. "I just came out here for some fresh air and I got a little lost in my thoughts. That's all." He wasn't convinced. "I think the students have been left without supervision for long enough. Should we get back?"

Since he called her out on her odd behavior, Olivia had been nothing but smiles. He couldn't help but wonder if she was putting on a charade, or if he had genuinely caught her in a moment of deep thought. He didn't have much time to dwell on the subject. A few of the students had left their respective testing areas messy, and he had to demand they re-clean it.

On the way back to the marina, he was able to hold a miniature lesson on the ecology of the bay, complete with seal spotting. It was getting close to their dinnertime, and the mammals were active, leaping into the water to hunt for their fish. Even Olivia seemed to take delight in watching the creatures.

A storm was rolling in, and the waves were progressively bigger. The yacht, large as it was, rocked back and forth as if it were merely a toy for the ocean. The captain hastened into the sanctuary of the marina, where the waves were only just beginning to pick up.

As the boat pulled into its spot, a few deckhands ran over to assist in tying the boat down. The gap between the ship and the dock was a lot bigger this time. Fitz leapt off the ship first, offering help to each of his students as they stepped onto the more stable surface. As soon as they were on land, they ran to the bus, attempting to get into the dry heat of the vehicle.

Olivia was the last one to get off the boat. Fitz held out a hesitant hand, hoping that she wouldn't reject his help. Without her heels, she was just as small as some of his students. She gave him an incredulous look, and his hand shot back to his side. "I don't need your help, Grant."

It happened so fast.

Fitz watched as her foot landed on the dock, and then watched her slip. The boat had rocked unexpectedly, throwing her off balance. She cried out, throwing her arms into the air in an attempt to steady herself. Before Fitz knew what he was doing, he grabbed her waist and pulled her to him. Her body crashed into his and he stumbled backwards, attempting to regain his footing.

He found it just in time; another step and they would both be in the icy water. His arms tightly enveloped her and he let himself pause for a moment, his heart racing. Before he had a chance to let go, she roughly pushed out of his embrace.

Fitz expected a smile or a thank you from Pope, but none came. Instead, a slim finger poked angrily at his chest. "I told you I didn't need any help," she growled.

"I just saved you from falling into the water, and this is the thanks I get?" She turned to leave, and he followed her. "If there ever came a time whether I had to choose whether or not to take a bullet for you, I wouldn't. And even if I did, you'd probably just get mad at me for that, too."

"I'm sorry I rejected your completely unnecessary attempt to help me."

"You're so ungrateful!" He heard her gasp and saw her bring her hand up to slap him. He cringed, anticipating the hard blow. When nothing happened, he hesitantly pried an eye open. His anger dissipated into concern as he took in her expression. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing. I'm fine." Her voice was adamant enough that Fitz couldn't help but believe her.

It had started to drizzle, and Olivia stepped onto the bus, ending their conversation. It was only when Fitz took his seat next to her that he noticed she was shaking.

 **/**

The rain was coming down in sheets; even with the windshield wipers turned as fast as they could go, the bus driver could hardly see. To make matters worse, they were in bumper-to-bumper traffic, and the sun was beginning to set.

After checking his watch, Fitz came to a hasty decision. They were ahead of schedule by almost a full hour, which was more than enough time to stop somewhere and wait for the rain to let up.

He turned to his colleague. "Are you hungry?" She gave him a small nod. "All right." He ran up to the bus driver, giving him instructions to pull off the main road and find someplace with a large enough parking lot to house a bus. The man was happy to comply, and suggested that they go to Giorgio's Pizza. His cousin was the owner of the restaurant, and he would happily service a group of thirty. Fitz couldn't disagree.

They received a warm welcome at the door and were escorted toward the back of the restaurant, where there was a large table set up. The students hastily took their seats, leaving Olivia and Fitz at one of the ends. He gave her a soft smile, one she surprisingly returned.

After they had ordered their drinks and pizza, Fitz and Olivia settled into a comfortable conversation. He tried to keep the topic light, still uncertain about her past behavior.

"Where did you grow up?" he asked.

"Brooklyn." She took in his look.

"A city girl?" He gave her a once over, taking in her mocha skin. "I guess I could see that." "Where did you get your education?"

"I completed my undergraduate at Harvard, then I went on and got my Masters and Doctorate at UVA."

"Harvard and UVA? Impressive." He wanted to smack himself for being so awkward.

She didn't seem to mind the awkwardness though. "Tell me, where are you from? You seem like a west coast kind of guy."

"How did you guess? I'm from Santa Barbara. My college offered a program, and I was eager to see what the east coast had to offer. I came here and fell in love with it, and I have been here ever since."

"Don't you miss California?" she asked.

"Of course, but I visit when I have the time." Their conversation was briefly interrupted by the arrival of several steaming pizzas. Fitz's mouth watered in anticipation of the Italian food. After he finished his first slice and was halfway through a second, he picked the conversation back up. "So how did you end up with a job here? With a doctorate, I'm surprised you're not teaching at a college."

Olivia set down the crust of her first slice of pizza and pushed the plate away. She was quiet a moment, a thoughtful expression on her face. "I taught at a small college in Virginia, but I didn't like that I couldn't develop a close relationship with my students. I mean, I offered office hours, but aside from that I didn't get a chance to know more than a handful of them." She took a sip of her drink. "I liked my job, but it was just time to move on."

"Why Westside?" he asked. "Maine is an awful long way from Virginia."

"I just needed a change of scenery, I guess." She looked away for a moment, a frown on her lips. "What about you?" she asked softly.

"One of my good friends used to teach at Westside. He was head of the science department at the time, and when he heard that I was looking for a job and he offered me a position. He retired a few years ago."

The rest of the dinner went over well; they were able to get out of the restaurant in a reasonable amount of time. The rain hadn't stopped, but it had let up considerably, and the bus driver was comfortable enough to drive them back to Westside.

He and Pope continued their conversation, delving a little bit more into their families and their educational backgrounds. She was curious about his upbringing in California, and managed to keep him busy answering her questions. The trip back to campus seemed unbelievably short, even though they were stuck in traffic for more than half of it.

A few of the students lived on campus, but the majority lived with their families in the surrounding town of Saco. It was dreadful outside, and the bus driver couldn't wait for the children to all get picked up. After helping Fitz unload the leftover experiment materials into his office, he left.

As it was already well past nine on a Friday, the main building was already tightly locked for the weekend, and Fitz's office was too far from the main road. The students were forced to huddle outside as they waited for their parents.

Fitz turned to a shivering Olivia. "You don't have to stay," he murmured. "You can go home. I know you must be cold."

She gave him a small smile and shook her head. "It's fine, I can wait here with you." She gestured to the parking lot. "Unless, of course, you want me to go?"

"No, of course not," he hastily insisted. "I just thought that since I forced you to chaperone this field trip you'd be eager to go home." She gave him a shrug in response.

It took twenty minutes to send off all the students. By the time the last car pulled out of sight, Fitz's clothing was soaked through. He turned in the direction of the parking lot, eager to get into his dry car. Olivia quietly followed after him.

Now that they were alone, Fitz was uncertain of what to do or say. He debated walking her to her car, but hesitated when he had the chance to put his thoughts to action. They spent the entire walk to their cars in an awkward silence.

"Good night," Olivia called. Fitz spun around. He had been so immersed in his thoughts he hadn't even noticed she had stopped by her car. He gave her a wave and wished her a good weekend. As Fitz got into his convertible, he decided that he was more confused about his relationship with Olivia than he had ever been with another woman.

 _A/N: Hmmmm, Fitz is confused? What? Let me know what you guys think :)_

 _Thank you guys for all of your reviews. I appreciate every single one of them! I wrote this story awhile ago, and its based on something that has happened to a friend of mine. You'll see what I mean as the story progresses. Everyone enjoy the weekend. ~S_


	5. Chapter 5

_Well, I was watching football- the Chicago Bears. Long story short, they are losing, so I decided to spoil you guys. Here is another update to wrap up the weekend. :)_

Fitz trudged toward his office, pulling his coat tighter. For the past week, the rain hadn't stopped, and the temperature had been consecutively dropping. It was supposed to let up by the next week, but Fitz had his doubts. He cursed the fact that his final class for the day was entirely across campus from his office.

It had only been drizzling earlier, so Fitz had decided not to bring his umbrella. He was regretting it now. The rain wasn't heavy, but it was chilling, and made the brisk walk all the more unpleasant. He broke out into a light run when he saw his building, letting out a sigh of relief as he stepped into the heat. His shoes squeaked on the floor.

He heard voices drifting from the office. He paused at the door to listen, wondering who Pope was talking to. "I'm sorry, Emily, but I can't raise your essay grade. Your revision wasn't any better than the original. I'm going to stick with a 'C' but why don't we talk about your next essay?"

Fitz gave a hesitant knock on the door before stepping into the room. "Am I interrupting anything?" he asked. Olivia looked at him, her face serious for a moment before breaking out into a small smile.

"No, come in," she said. "Emily, you don't mind if Mr. Grant is in here?" The blonde student shook her head. Fitz took a seat at his desk and began to unload his bag. He pretended to focus on reading over his next lecture, but he was much more interested in Pope's conversation. She had been given an opportunity to observe him with his students, and he was eager to do the same.

"I was planning on writing my next essay on the most recent piece we read," the student said.

Olivia gave her a little nod and adjusted her reading glasses. "There's a lot of great material to work with in As I Lay Dying. What would be the premise of the essay?"

"Well, I narrowed it down to two topics, but I'm not sure about the second one. I really liked the character of Anse Bundren, and wanted to write about him, but I don't know if I could write an entire essay."

"I've always thought that Anse Bundren is one of Faulkner's greatest creations," Pope said. "He's such an atrocious man, but there's something about him that gives him authority over everyone." The student nodded enthusiastically. "You could do a great character study on him. But you said you were concerned about the length of the essay; what was your other idea?"

The two carried on for quite a while, discussing Emily's next essay. Eventually, Fitz got tired of listening and attempted to focus on grading some homework. He was certainly impressed with Pope; in just the short time, she proved what an amazing teacher she was. By the time Emily left, she was much more confident about her new essay. Olivia had even helped her write a great thesis.

A half hour after Emily's departure, Olivia began to pack up her things. It was well past five, and even Fitz was getting antsy to get home. "Have a good night," she told him, shutting the door softly behind her.

Minutes later, the door opened again. Fitz didn't look up from his paperwork. "Back already, Pope?" he asked, half expecting that she had forgotten something. When he didn't get a reply, he looked up. A tall, blonde man was standing in the doorway. Fitz leapt to his feet. "I'm sorry. I thought you were my office-mate. Come in, please." He held out his hand. "I'm Fitzgerald Grant."

"Jake Ballard."

"Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Ballard. Have a seat." The man flashed him a near perfect smile before settling into the proffered chair.

"Which one is yours?" Fitz asked, opening up his grade book and putting on his glasses.

"Excuse me?"

"What's your child's name?" Fitz asked, mentally preparing himself for the barrage of questions as to why Jake's child was failing his class.

"Oh, no, I don't have any children. I actually came here to see Olivia."

"You just missed her," Fitz said, confused. If this man didn't have any children, then why did he need to see Pope?

"Oh." Jake sounded disappointed. He sat still for a moment, seemingly mulling things over. "I don't mean to be a bother, but…you wouldn't happen to have her address, would you? When Olivia heard that I was in the area on a business trip, she insisted that I come over to see her new place. She gave me her address over the phone, but I lost it. She mentioned that she was working here, so I thought that I could catch her." He gave a shrug. "I'd be really embarrassed to have to call and ask for it again."

"So you're her friend?"

"Yeah, good friend. I can't believe I didn't write it down."

"I think she has it somewhere in her desk," Fitz said, hesitantly. "Let me look for you." He moved some papers around, spotting the numbers of the address peeking out on one of the pages. "How did you two meet?" he asked, trying not to sound overly interested.

"We met in college," Jake said, without missing a beat. "We were both English majors, so we had a few classes together. We lost touch when I went to law school." He shifted in his seat, checking his watch. "Mr. Grant, I don't mean to rush you, but I do have to be at her house in half an hour. Have you had any luck finding it? She's expecting me."

"Yeah, hold on. I've got it." Fitz copied the address to an empty page. Jake grabbed it as soon as he finished writing.

"Thanks," Jake said, standing up. Fitz opened his mouth to speak, but the man left the room before he could say anything. Fitz settled back in his chair, wondering if he'd made a mistake.

/

Olivia had been absent for two days. It wasn't normal for Fitz to be this worried over a co-worker, but his experience with Jake on Monday had changed that. It wasn't that he was completely convinced Pope's friend had something to do with it, but it certainly was suspicious.

As Fitz trudged back to his office, he realized he was more focused on worrying about his office-mate's whereabouts than appreciating the unusually hot day Maine was in the midst of having. He had shed his tweed jacket after his first class, and even his long sleeve shirt was too hot. Aside from crossing campus to get to his classes, he had hid indoors the entire day.

It was the end of the school day, and Fitz was eager to get home. He had been so busy grading the lab reports from the past week's field trip that he hadn't had a moment to himself. He was eager to catch up on his favorite television shows, and of course make amends with his undoubtedly upset golden retriever, who had been on ignore since Friday.

Fitz hadn't planned on stopping at his office, but he had forgotten an important folder. When he came to his office door, he was surprised to see that it was unlocked. He was even more surprised to see Pope inside the room, hastily packing a stack of papers into her bag.

He couldn't help but state the obvious. "You weren't in school today." She gave a little gasp, and Fitz felt a little bad for scaring her. "Are you feeling all right?" He pretended not to notice as she slipped on her sunglasses before turning to face him. What was she trying to hide?

"Yes, I'm fine," she said. "Just a twenty-four hour stomach bug. I must have caught it from one of the students. I'm still a bit nauseated, but I'm feeling a lot better."

"What are you doing here, then?" he asked, moving to his side of the room. He settled at his desk, attempting to discreetly catch a glimpse of her face. Her hair, down for once, was in front of her face, making it hard for Fitz to even see her sunglasses.

"Just collecting some essays I need to grade. I figured I could get a little ahead of schedule while I recovered." She finished packing her papers into her bag and zipped it up. Fitz watched as she gingerly swung it onto her shoulder and headed for the door.

"So I'll see you in school tomorrow?" he asked, but he didn't get a response. He didn't want her to leave quite yet. She hadn't been to work in days, and he felt that he would have at least been notified that she was sick. "I've been meaning to ask, did you ever see Jake?"

Olivia had been halfway out the door, but as soon as she heard Jake's name she came to a halt. "How do you know him?" she asked. She took a step back into the room, shutting the door quietly behind her. She didn't come further into the room, but she dropped her bag to the ground. It made a loud noise as it clashed against the floor, but neither Olivia nor Fitz broke eye contact.

"He stopped by the office the other day," Fitz said slowly, gauging her reaction. Her body was tense, and it looked like she was about to run out of the room.

"He what!" Her hands involuntarily balled into fists.

"I thought you two were friends," he hastily explained. "He said that he was in town for a business trip, and when you heard about it, you invited him over. He said you had given him your address over the phone, but he lost it. He came to the office, hoping that you'd be here, but you had just left. He didn't want to call you again, so I gave him your address."

"And you believed him?" Fitz leapt to his feet as Olivia approached his desk. She was furious, and he was afraid that she would actually hit him.

"He seemed upset. I didn't mean to cause any problems." His calm words seemed to help; her shoulders slumped and her hands unclenched.

"Last week you couldn't even stand the sight of me. You were desperate to get me out of your office, and you forced me to go on a field trip with you just because I outdid your event. Now I'm supposed to believe you care?" Doubt was now laced into her angry tone.

"Yes, you are. I do care," he assured her. When she didn't so much as bat an eye at his confession, he ventured to pressure her. "So, did you see him?"

She let out a strangled laugh. "I saw him." With a shaking hand, she removed her sunglasses. Fitz bit back a gasp. Though she had artfully covered it up with a decent amount of makeup, her black eye was still visible. Even with a few days to heal, the area around her eye was swollen. She smoothed her hair out, and Fitz got a brief glimpse of a cut near her hairline. She shifted on her feet, waiting for him to say something.

"Did Jake do that to you?" Fitz felt sick. He had inadvertently done this to her.

She looked up at him, embarrassed. "It was my fault," she whispered, "I provoked him." Without thinking, he reached out to comfort her. His fingers brushed against her arms, and she flinched away from the touch. His hands fell to his sides.

"No matter what you said or did, he had no right to lay his hands on you. This isn't your fault. Do you understand?" She nodded, but didn't look at all convinced. "Where are you staying? Please tell me you're not going back to your house."

"I'm staying at the inn down the road."

Fitz winced. Staying at a hotel wasn't nearly as bad as staying at her home, now that Jake knew where she lived. Had she been staying anywhere else, Fitz would have been okay with it. However, the Inn wasn't exactly known for its security and discretion of patrons.

"You don't have any friends you could stay with?" he asked.

"No."

"Well, it's not safe for you to stay in a hotel room alone."

"I just moved here; I don't know anybody, and I don't have any friends. Who would I stay with?"

"Me." It was a split second decision backed by his guilt. He had gotten her into this situation, and even though he hadn't wanted her in his office up until a week ago, he was inviting her to his home. "You can stay with me," he reiterated.

"No, I –"

"I won't let you say no. I have a guest bedroom." She looked unconvinced so he added, "Please, you'll be much safer with me."

"I don't want to be a burden," she protested weakly.

"You wouldn't be, I promise." She was silent. "Is that a yes?"

She nodded.

 _A/N: *gasps* So, Fitz offered and she accepted. Let's see how this works out. Thank you guys- I appreciate all your reviews/follows. ~S_


	6. Chapter 6

_Here is the next chapter... hope you enjoy. :)_

Though Olivia protested against leaving her car at the school parking lot, minutes later they were seated in Fitz's Audi, on their way to the inn. He promised her that the next day they could come get the car. Despite her minor attempt to dissuade him, she didn't argue. He wouldn't admit it out loud, but he didn't feel comfortable leaving her on her own, and it appeared she felt the same way.

The hotel was only two streets up from the school, but it still took a few minutes to get to, due to the numerous stoplights. Fitz tried to think of something, anything, to say, but nothing seemed appropriate. As another stoplight impeded their progression, he turned to look at Olivia.

She had slipped her sunglasses back on when they left the office; if it weren't for her tense shoulders, he wouldn't have suspected anything was wrong underneath her large lenses. She looked at him, and he quickly turned his eyes back to the road, embarrassed that he had been caught.

"You don't have to come in with me," she said. "I can just go grab my bags and check out of the hotel."

"Nonsense." He felt an irrational surge of panic rise to his chest. "I'll come up with you." She gave him a small shrug. He let her tell him how to get to the main lobby, and followed her up to her room on the second floor.

He wasn't entirely sure what he was expecting to see in Olivia's room, but the utter lack of entropy surprised him. Her room was unnaturally clean, especially with the rest of the hotel so dingy. It didn't even look like she had lived in the room.

It took her a few minutes to pack her clothing and various bathroom supplies. Fitz stood by the door, uncertain if he had permission to come into her room. He took in the floral bedspread, wincing as he noticed how terribly it clashed with the plaid curtains. When it looked like Olivia was finished clearing her items out of the room, he stepped in to grab her suitcase. She gave him a grateful smile.

"Here we are," Fitz said, pulling into his driveway. While Olivia studied the outside of his home, he took the opportunity to unlock the front door and unload her stuff from the trunk of his car. She followed him into the house. For as short a time it took her to re-pack her suitcase, it held a lot of clothes. He tried not to let on that he was out of breath by the time they had finished climbing to the second story.

He walked to the end of the hall. "This is the guest bedroom." She peered inside, taking in the earthly hue of the room.

"It's lovely," she murmured. "Thank you."

He set her suitcase on the bed. "I, uhm," he scratched the back of his head. "I'm going to go make dinner. You said you had some essays to grade. Did you want me to show you where the office is?"

As Fitz stepped off the stairs and onto the main floor of his house, he heard a whine from the backyard. He stopped abruptly, and Olivia almost ran into him. "You're not allergic to dogs, are you?" he asked, worried.

"No, I love dogs."

"Would you like to meet Kaner?" he asked. "He'll bark at first, but I promise he's friendly." She gave him a nod and they made their way to the back door. The golden retriever sat expectantly at the door, his tail wagging. When he saw Olivia, he paused a moment, unsure. After a quick glance at Fitz he barked her, attempting to protect Fitz from this perceived stranger.

Olivia squatted down and cooed at him. With that, Kaner's guard fell. He rushed to her, whining happily. She didn't push him away when he almost knocked her over, but pulled him closer, patting him on the head. Fitz found himself grinning at the situation. He had fully expected Kaner to be opposed to sharing the house with Olivia, but now he was certain that his dog wouldn't leave her alone.

Kaner wriggled out of Olivia's grasp and charged into the house. She looked a little surprised by his change in temper, and he assured her that the retriever was just getting a toy. Moments later, the dog ran back with a plush goose, dropping it expectantly at her feet. Though playing fetch with his dog probably hadn't been on her list of things to do tonight, she indulged Kaner for a few minutes.

Even though Fitz had offered to show her to the office, he didn't protest when she made no mention of it and instead settled at the kitchen bar. She offered to help Fitz cook, but he insisted that she get to work on the essays; after missing a few days of school he knew she was behind on her work.

Fitz put a pot on the stove, figuring that spaghetti was an easy enough meal. As he pulled out lettuce and tomatoes for a salad, he caught himself watching Olivia. She had put her reading glasses on, but he could still make out the discoloring around her eye. He sliced the next tomato with a little more force than necessary.

It look less than a half hour to make dinner, but by the time it was set out on the dining table, Fitz was starving. Olivia managed to pull herself away from her work to join him. He was a little apprehensive that they wouldn't be able to keep up a conversation, but Olivia surprised him. They kept the topic light. She complimented his house and he told her some amusing stories about Kaner.

As dinner came to a close, so did the innocent nature of their conversation. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "Are you sure you don't mind me staying here? I could always go back to the hotel if –"

"If I hadn't wanted you here, I wouldn't have invited you," he told her matter-of-factly. His honestly seemed to quell her nervousness, and she gave him a small nod. They both got up from the table, plates in hand. He reached out to take hers. "Let me." His fingers brushed against the tips of hers, and she visibly tensed.

"Would you mind if I took Kaner for a walk?" she asked.

"No, of course not. Let me just get his leash." He dumped the dirty plates into the sink and went to the closet to get the retriever's collar. As soon as the ensemble was put on the dog, Kaner ran to the door. Olivia appeared moments later, a coat in hand. Fitz silently handed her the leash. He hoped that she would ask him to come along, but when he received no invitation he wished them well and told her the name of his street in case she got lost.

The door shut in front of him, and Fitz wondered if letting her be alone with her thoughts was really the best thing to do.

/

It was well past sundown when Fitz began to worry about Olivia. Kaner knew his way around the neighborhood, but the retriever had trouble recognizing landmarks late at night. At the two-hour mark he went to grab his car keys. The warm temperature of the afternoon had vanished, leaving it colder than ever. Fitz ran back inside to grab a coat.

His neighborhood was relatively inactive past ten o'clock, and tonight was no exception. His was the only car out on the streets, and he found himself going at a snail's pace, looking down every cul-de-sac for Olivia and Kaner. After fifteen minutes of searching, he was frustrated and ready to give up. They weren't down any street, nor were they back home.

As he drove through the neighborhood for the second time, the silhouette of a figure caught his eye. He had completely forgotten that there was a playground in his neighborhood, and when he had driven by the first time he hadn't even thought to look past the sidewalk. He got out of the car and slowly approached the park, uncertain if the figure perched on the swing was Olivia. His uncertainty was cured when he heard a whine and saw Kaner run to greet him.

He gave the retriever a pat before making his way over to Olivia. She didn't look up as he settled onto the swing next to hers. Even in the dim lighting of the street lamps, he could tell how upset she was. He was content just to sit next to her, but as the minutes of awkward silence doubled and tripled, he felt like he had to say something. "It's a little chilly out here, isn't it?" As his voice broke the silence, Olivia jumped. Her eyes ghosted his figure before she continued to stare at the ground. "It's a good night for a swing." This time, she didn't even look at him.

He let out an inaudible sigh. "I'm not very good at this, but I want to share a story with you. It's hard to tell." He shifted in his seat, trying to find a comfortable spot on the hard rubber. "When I was eight, my father died of cancer. It took my mother years to even consider dating again, but when I was thirteen she met Charles. He loved my mom dearly, and for that I am grateful. When he was around her, he acted like he was a great father figure. But when my brothers and I were alone with him, he made it clear that we were unwanted, that we hindered his relationship with my mother. He was especially hard on me, because I was always getting into trouble. My mother used to work during the day, so whenever I got sent home, Charles had to come pick me up. I was convinced that, once we were alone in the car, he would beat me for my bad behavior. He never raised a hand to me, but his constant criticism was enough to drive anyone mad. I moved out as soon as I possibly could, and when I found out that I could come to the east coast to study, I raised my grades so that a university would accept me. It was a relief to get away."

Fitz looked away, his heart pounding. He hadn't told that story in a long time; he didn't often torture himself with memories of the past. He didn't expect Olivia to say anything, so he was caught off guard when she said, "You said he 'loved' her, not 'loves.' What happened to him?"

"He died five years ago. I never thought I would be happy hearing about someone passing, but I was ecstatic that day." Fitz nudged the ground with his boot, digging into the fresh mulch of the playground.

"Thank you for sharing that with me," she murmured.

"I just wanted you to know that I know where you're coming from." She drew in a sharp breath as he continued. "If you ever want to talk, I'm here."

She gave him an undecipherable glance. "I've been trying to figure out where it all went wrong," she began. "I knew he had problems, but I thought our love was enough." Her voice caught. "That I was enough."

"We met in college; we had an English class together. I'm not sure how, but he wound up in my circle of friends, and we became close. He was very shy, so by the time he admitted that he liked me as more than a friend, we were already seniors."

"Before we even really began to know each other, we graduated. I went to UVA and we lost contact for years. The way we met again was very serendipitous; he happened to get a job at a law firm near the college I was teaching at. We ran into each other at the movie theater, and before I knew it we were dating and he was proposing to me. It felt right, and I said yes."

"Thinking back, I should have known there was a problem. He was always so jealous of the time I spent with my friends. He would get so mad after I went out on a girls' night. At the time, I thought it was sweet, even flattering, that he loved me so much he couldn't bear for me to be away from his side for more than a few hours. Our wedding was surreal; I remember comparing it to a fairy tale."

"Once we got back from our honeymoon, everything changed. He became controlling. I couldn't go out for a girls' night, he would miss me too much. If I went grocery shopping, I had a certain time I had to be back by, and I had to have my cell phone on me at all times. Dinner had to be served at six-thirty." She took a ragged breath. Fitz thought he saw tears in her eyes. "I remember the first day he hit me. It was my fault; I hadn't called to tell him I was grocery shopping, and I was running late. I tried to rush home, to get there before he got out of work, but there was a huge accident and traffic was backed up for miles. When I got home, he was waiting for me. He flipped out, accused me of cheating on him. I told him I loved him and would never betray him like that, but he wouldn't believe me." She let out a shaky breath. "He was so contrite afterwards. He bought me roses and a diamond necklace. I thought that it was a one-time thing, but whenever he got mad at me, he'd lose control. He'd apologize each time, and I always believed that he would stop hurting me, that it would get better."

"My sister was about to have her first child, and she wanted me to be there with her. I asked Jake if I could go be with my family, but he refused. He had a big case he was working on, and couldn't take off. If he couldn't go, neither could I. When he told me, I was furious enough to disobey him. I bought myself a plane ticket and left the next day. During the week I stayed with my sister, I didn't even get a call from him." She looked like she was determined not to cry, but a renegade tear slid down her cheek. She angrily wiped it away. "As it got closer to the time I needed to go back home, I started to call him. I apologized dozens of times over the phone, hoping that he would at least get a few of my messages. He met me at the airport and drove me home. I thought that everything was okay. He was happy to see me. As soon as we got into the house, his attitude changed."

"I went upstairs to put my suitcase away, and before I made it halfway up the stairs he started to hit me. I fell down the stairs. I guess my screams were loud enough to concern the neighbors, and when they saw him running away from the house they called the cops. When I woke up, I was in the hospital. I was convinced he was going to visit me. Every moment I spent there was torture. Every time someone opened the door to check on me, I thought it was him. I'd never been so afraid."

"He never came. I thought I had escaped him for good. But now that he's here…" She paused and took a steady breath, squeezing her eyes shut. "Now I have to live through that terror again." She got up from the swing, her back turned to Fitz. Her voice thickened with restrained tears. "I don't know if I'm strong enough to get through it a second time." She wrapped her arms around herself, and began to sob in earnest.

Fitz rushed over to her. Every cry that escaped her seemed to shoot straight through his chest; he wanted to reach out and hold her, but he didn't want to upset her more. He laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You're not alone," he found himself saying, wanting to reassure her. She turned to look at him, fat tears sliding down her flushed cheeks. "I'm here. You don't have to worry. We'll get through this together."

Before he could blink, she had her arms wrapped around his waist and her head pressed against his chest. Her sobs grew more powerful, muffled against his shirt as he pulled her close, pressing her against him. She was shaking violently, and he found himself placing feathery kisses on the top of her head to try to calm her. "Shh, Liv. It's okay" A sense of determination came over him. "I won't let him hurt you."

 _A/N: *waves* I hope everyone has a good weekend! Sorry I have been gone for a few days._

 _Did you guys enjoy the first episode? Predictions? I absolutely loved it- watched it twice already! :)_

 _I appreciate all of your reviews... remember this is something that actually occurred not to me, but to someone close to me. I didn't know how else to cope with it, so I wrote my feelings.. if that makes sense? :)_

 _Changing the rating too. :) xoxo_


	7. Chapter 7

_Enjoy :)_

Fitz woke up feeling both physically and emotionally exhausted. He pushed a pillow over his head, attempting to block out the bright sunshine. He was about to drift back to sleep when he realized, quite suddenly, that his alarm hadn't woken him up. He shot out of bed, terrified to look at to even look at his clock. It was already seven-thirty, and he had to be at school by eight.

He grabbed his towel and ran to the bathroom. He leapt into the shower and turned the water on, yelping as the cold water cascaded down his back. Minutes later, he was wolfing down a bowl of cereal as he attempted to put on a tie. The resulting effort was a wet shirt. With a frustrated sigh he ran back upstairs to grab another.

It was only then that it occurred to him he wasn't going to be the only one late for work; Olivia was in the bedroom next door. He glanced furtively at his watch and then made the executive decision to be a few minutes tardy. His first class didn't start until nine, anyways.

Fitz gave a gentle knock on her bedroom door, only to realize it was open a crack; it swung open, revealing a very much sleeping Olivia. She was clutching one of the throw pillows, holding onto it as if her life depended upon it. He stepped across the threshold, mesmerized by his office-mate. This was the first time he'd seen her in a t-shirt; his eyes traveled over her small figure. He should have known that her bruising extended past her black eye; her upper arms were black and blue. If he squinted just right, the bruises resembled hand prints.

She looked so fragile; he wanted to reach out and hold her like he had last night. His heart began to race as the details of the previous night came rushing back to him. He didn't remember how long he held her, but by the time they wound up back at his house it was well past midnight. She had gone to bed immediately, leaving Fitz to dwell on his thoughts. He hadn't gotten much sleep.

He let out a sigh. There was no way he could wake her. He bit his lip, thinking. He had more than enough sick days saved up. He gave Olivia one last look before tiptoeing out of the room and shutting the door behind him.

It took him a moment to locate his briefcase and pull out his cell phone. Smith didn't usually get around to his office before a quarter past eight, so Fitz decided to bypass the principal's nonsensical secretary and call his cell. Smith picked up with a curt greeting.

"Smith, it's Fitz," he began.

"Hello, Fitz. What can I do for you?"

"I'm sorry that this is such short notice, but I need to take today off."

"Is everything okay? Are you sick?"

"No I'm not sick. But, uhm…" Fitz trailed off, uncertain how much Smith knew about Olivia's past, if any.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I know you have over two weeks of vacation time saved up. Whatever it is it much be urgent."

"Thank you for understanding."

"Before I let you go, have you heard anything from Dr. Pope? She's called in sick the entire week, and I haven't heard anything from her today. I don't know if she's coming in." Fitz was quiet a moment, trying to figure out how much he could tell Smith. The principal took his silence as a response. "It's okay," he sighed. "I couldn't possibly expect you to know where she is; she's only you're office-mate. I'm sure you must be eager to have a day free from Dr. Pope."

"Actually, I was meaning to talk to you about that. I can have her call you later, but right now she's dealing with some personal issues."

"This is about her husband, isn't it?" Smith's jovial tone faded into seriousness.

"Yes," Fitz murmured. "How much do you know about him?"

"Enough to know that him coming up in conversation can only mean trouble. Take all the time you need, Fitz," he said. "And be sure to tell Olivia the same."

Nearly fifteen minutes later, he heard the floorboards creaking upstairs; Olivia was awake. He took the stairs two at a time, hoping to catch her before she freaked out about being late. She came flying out of the guest bedroom, and almost ran right into him. "You could have woken me up!" she yelled. "Now we're going to be late to work."

He gave her a small, nervous smile. "I just got off the phone with Smith."

Her eyes narrowed. "What did you tell him?"

"Nothing he didn't already know." She gave him a full-fledged glare. "Don't worry, I didn't mention anything about last night. I just called to tell him that there were some personal matters we had to attend to, and he guessed what it was about. I didn't give him any more information than was necessary. He gave us the day off."

She was furious. "Fitz, I didn't want the day off. I've had this entire week off, to sit around and think about what's happened. I don't need any more time away from work."

"I know you may feel that way," he said calmly, "but you have to think about more than just yourself. You may think you're ready to go back, but what will your students think when they see your bruises?"

Her hand flew up to her black eye. "I can put on enough makeup to hide it. It's not like this is my first time covering up a bruise, Fitz."

"You said you wanted something to take your mind off this week. Why don't we go do something fun? We could go to Old Orchard beach."

"I need to go to work, not play hooky."

"Okay," he conceded. "But before you go, I want to ask you a question, and I hope that you'll answer me truthfully." She gave him a nonchalant shrug. "Will you be okay at work?"

"Of course," came her automatic reply. A few seconds later, her shoulders fell and she covered her face with her hands. "I don't know," she admitted, her voice muffled. Her arms fell to her sides. "It's an irrational fear. I know he wouldn't try to hurt me in such a public place, but I am a little scared. You're right. Maybe I need to take today off, to clear my head."

He gave her a grateful smile.

 **/**

While Olivia took a shower, Fitz figured he would make them breakfast. He had forgotten how long it took women to get ready; by the time she made it downstairs, the pancakes he had made her were cold, and also a little burnt. He discreetly fed them to Kaner.

"Chocolate chips in your pancakes?" he casually asked, starting the breakfast process all over again. She nodded happily, and he felt a surge of relief. After all that had happened in the past week, the least he could do was make sure she had a good breakfast. "What about your eggs? How do you like your eggs?"

"Scrambled is fine," she murmured. She settled into the kitchen nook, Kaner trailing loyally behind her. His tail thumped against the hardwood floor as she paid special attention to the back of his ear. "I really appreciate it, but you don't have to go through all this effort to make me breakfast. Cereal would have been fine."

"It's no problem at all," he quickly assured her. "Sausage or bacon?"

She gave him a nonchalant shrug. "Whichever you prefer." Fitz settled for bacon, hoping against all odds that she would be okay with it. He knew it was irrational, but he hoped that by making a perfect breakfast for her it would assuage some of the guilt he was feeling.

He cracked the eggs over the skillet, watching as the clear, gelatinous egg white turned opaque. He poked his spatula into the yolk, scrambling the egg as he waited for the pancakes to finish cooking. After the last batch of burnt pancakes, he was determined not to overcook any of them.

"So, Old Orchard beach?" Olivia asked. Fitz turned to look at her, his face hot and red from the radiating heat of the oven top. "It isn't just a beach, is it?"

"You've never been?" She shook her head. "It's great, really, once you know when to go. In the summertime it's especially crowded with tourists. Autumn is the perfect time, especially on a Friday morning. This weekend is the annual craft fair, though, so it might be more crowded than usual." Fitz took a moment to flip the pancakes. "Old Orchard has a lot of unique shops, and there's a carnival on the boardwalk. That doesn't open until noon, but I'm sure we'll be able to find something to do in the meantime. I'm almost positive I saw bookstore on one of the streets the last time I went."

He shut off the burners on the stove and piled the food onto two plates, making sure Olivia's was overly full. During the last few meals he had eaten with her, he had noticed that she hadn't finished off more than a quarter of her meal. He was determined to fix her eating habits; she was already far too thin.

 **/**

The drive to Old Orchard Beach was only fifteen minutes, all of which time was spent in silence. Olivia seemed content to look out the window, and Fitz couldn't think of anything worthwhile to talk about. There was hardly any traffic on the road, and even though there was a fair in less than twenty-four hours, they had arrived before many of the vendors. Fitz was able to find a decent spot in a public parking lot on First Street. It was a little ways away, but Fitz had wanted to give Olivia the chance to explore a bit, and this was the perfect opportunity.

It had taken him a while to finish cooking his near perfect breakfast, but it was still only a quarter past ten. Though the ocean wasn't in sight, Fitz could still smell the tangy scent of the sea spray as he got out of the car. When they were far enough away from the vehicle, he double pressed the lock button on his car remote, sending the loitering seagulls high into the air. The birds shrieked their distaste of the loud horn, but didn't settle near his car again.

Olivia raised an eyebrow at his behavior. "Are you always this mean to seagulls?" she asked, her bemused tone lessening the harshness of her words.

"I didn't want them to crap on my car," he explained. "Though now that I think about it, maybe they will, just to get revenge." He looked over just in time to see her smile. He felt the corners of his mouth lift in response.

"It's only right," she agreed, looking over at him. "If you don't go back there right now and apologize for your outlandish behavior, the car will be covered when we come back."

"I will do no such thing, even if it means sacrificing the cleanliness of my car."

Her grin spread. "If that happens, I'll have you know I'm not helping wash your car." He turned around. Olivia hesitated a moment before running to catch up with him. "Where are you going?"

"Back to the car, of course! The seagulls and I have reached an impasse. I'd rather leave Old Orchard Beach than apologize to them."

"No, don't do that!" She laughed.

Her hand reached out to grab his, her warm palm pressed against the back of his hand. Fitz stopped dead in his tracks. He turned to meet her glance, a soft smile on his lips. "All right, I won't. But only if the seagulls and I can sign a treaty."

"Oh?" She tried to let go of his hand, but he gently entwined his fingers with hers.

"I'll apologize," he began, not entirely sure why his heart was pounding so fast, "but only if I'm allowed to hold your hand for the rest of the day."

She gave him a curt nod, and he was worried he had pushed her too far until she murmured, "I'm sure that can be arranged."

It turned out they were several blocks away; he and Olivia strolled down the boardwalk, taking their time. At first she seemed uncomfortable to be holding his hand; there was a big enough gap to fit another person between them. Fitz fought to keep himself from blushing when he realized that, to the outside world, they looked very much like a couple. It occurred to him that Olivia might have had the same thought, and that was why she was keeping her distance. Needless to say he was caught off guard when, fifteen minutes into their walk, she moved closer to him, her arm brushing gently against his.

A few of the vendors for the fair were setting up, and Olivia watched in fascination as they unloaded their items. She was particularly taken with a booth full of objects decorated in sea glass. Though only a small portion of the merchandise was set out, Olivia seemed more than impressed with the uniqueness of each object. Fitz bit back a chuckle; she certainly hadn't been in the area for long. Art made from sea glass wasn't exactly a rarity.

A jingling door caught Fitz's attention, and he turned his head just in time to catch the bold scent of ground coffee beans. He'd had a cup of coffee with breakfast, but nothing was better than having a hot drink on a cold day. Before he could ask Olivia if she wanted a cup of coffee, she pointed up the street. "Is that the store you were talking about?"

He looked at the dangling sign on the front of the building. "Yes, that's it." He glanced at his watch. "It's just a few minutes past eleven. Do you think they would be open this early?"

"I would guess so. Can we go look, please?" He nodded, and she began to walk a little faster. Though he generally didn't get excited about books, her enthusiasm was contagious. He was slightly worried that the bookstore didn't open until later; many of the small shops had unusual hours, catered, naturally, to the tourist.

The store was open, much to his relief. He opened the door, and Olivia let go of his hand. Fitz immediately missed the warmth. As much as he wanted to reach out for her hand again, there wasn't enough room in the store for them to walk side by side. The smell of old books assaulted his nose as he stepped across the threshold.

Aside from the lone employee sitting forlornly at the front desk, the store was empty. Fitz followed after Olivia, more interested in watching her than browsing the musty shelves. "Are you looking for anything in particular?" he asked. She came to a stop near the back of the store, her finger coming up to trail along the spines of the books.

Her voice was quiet as she responded. "I know it sounds silly to come here to look for it, but I was hoping to find Gone with the Wind. I know I could just go to Barnes and Noble and buy a copy, but when I was a child, my grandmother gave me a leather bound edition. It probably wasn't the smartest thing, to give a twelve year old something that expensive, but I tried my hardest to keep it unblemished. I used to read it every night."

"Where is it now?"

She gave him a helpless shrug. "I don't know. Still in his house, I would imagine, unless he got rid of it." Fitz looked away, uncertain of what to say in response to that. There was no way she could get that book back from Jake.

He cleared his throat. "I'm going to go grab a cup of coffee from that shop we passed. Would you like anything?" She shook her head, distracted.

Instead of heading to the door, Fitz walked to the counter. The employee looked up, surprised. Fitz leaned in close, attempting to keep his voice quiet. "You wouldn't happen to have a leather bound edition of Gone with the Wind, would you?"

"No. We don't generally carry it in the store."

"Okay, that's all right. Could you order one for me?"

"From which publisher, sir?"

"There are different ones?" Fitz felt himself panicking. He hadn't realized there was more than one leather bound edition. He hadn't planned on replacing Olivia's book with an exact replica, but the thought of choosing the wrong publisher still troubled him.

"There are different versions of the book," the worker explained. "Each has its own cover illustration. The most popular edition is, of course, from Easton Press. That particular volume would have genuine leather, twenty-two karat gold accents, threat-sewn pages for–" Fitz rolled his eyes. He didn't want a sales pitch.

"That's the most popular?" Fitz interrupted. The employee nodded. "Okay, can you order that for me?"

"Yes, of course. Would you like to pick it up here?"

"I'd prefer if it was sent directly to my house. Can you do that?"

The worker turned around to pick up a clipboard, attaching an order form to the metal clip. He handed it to Fitz, along with a pen. "If you can fill that out, I can have the company send it to you." Fitz scribbled down his name and address and handed it back, along with his credit card. The employee didn't mention a price, and Fitz wasn't entirely sure he wanted to know how much he just spent.

He signed his receipt and gave a backward glance in Olivia's direction. She hadn't emerged from behind the bookshelves; he hoped that she had been too caught up in browsing to overhear his conversation. He slipped out of the shop, closing the door quietly behind him. He would have to hurry back with his cup of coffee, lest she should suspect anything.

 _A/N: Hi, everyone. I appreciate every single one of your reviews! Now back to studying for my anatomy test. *sighs* ~S_


	8. Chapter 8

_Here is the next chapter. Enjoy!_

They spent the next several hours window shopping and just enjoying one another's company. Olivia's mind was free of everything pertaining to Jake, she seemed much happier. She had even instigated another round of hand holding, pressing her side close to his and entwining their hands.

It was just after six o'clock, and the sky was beginning to change colors, readying itself for the inevitable setting of the sun. They were close to the amusement park, and Fitz couldn't help but suggest they go ride the Ferris wheel; the timing was all but perfect.

Now that everyone was free of their daily responsibilities, many had flocked to Old Orchard Beach. The amusement park was crowded; there was hardly enough room for them to walk through the mass of people. By the time they got to the line for the Ferris wheel, the sun was bright red. Fitz was worried that they wouldn't even get onto the ride until it was dark outside, but the line proved to be fast moving. Not even ten minutes later, they were at the front of the line.

Fitz handed the employee their tickets, and ushered Olivia onto the ride. She slid to the very edge of the booth, occupying only a quarter of the seat. Fitz settled a good distance away, uncertain. As the wheel brought them higher into the air, she visibly relaxed. She pushed herself closer toward the middle of the seat, but didn't reach out for physical contact.

The sun was low on the horizon as they reached the top of the wheel. The sky was darker, the sharp, vibrant colors descending into deep shades of blue and purple. Fitz's gaze swept across the calm ocean before returning to the ground below him. Olivia let out a soft sigh as she viewed the picturesque seascape. "From up here," she murmured, "all my problems seem so small, so insignificant."

In that delicate, quarter of a second it took for him to turn his head to look at his colleague, a lone, unmoving figure in the crowd caught his eye. It took even less time for him to recognize the man. He felt sick to his stomach. Jake. The man was looking in their direction, and Fitz a sinking feeling that Jake knew exactly which passenger car was theirs.

Fitz turned away, unable to look at the man any longer. He shut his eyes and drew in a shaking breath, hoping to quell the nausea. Olivia placed a comforting hand on his arm. "What's the matter?" she asked. He shook his head, trying to put himself together. They still had several minutes before the ride was over, enough time for him to prepare for a confrontation. How had Jake found them? And more importantly, how long had he been following them?

His shaking hands balled into uncertain fists. "If I had known you were afraid of heights, I wouldn't have agreed to ride the Ferris wheel with you." Olivia's joking tone sounded uncertain. Fitz shook his head, clearing his thoughts. He should be more worried about her than Jake.

"No, that's not it at all," he assured her. "I'm not scared."

Her brow furrowed. "What is it then?" she pressed.

"You're not going to be able to hide from him forever. How long are you going to let him torture you like this? I think you need to find a more permanent solution, something that will end all your ties with him. You need to get a divorce, Olivia."

He watched her stiffen, and knew that everything he had managed to accomplish today had just been ruined by his candid statement. Her walls were up, and now more fortified than ever. She moved back to her edge of the seat. "Can we please not talk about this now?"

Fitz bit his lip, trying his hardest to remain mute on the issue. He didn't want to push her farther away. She must have figured his silence was because of anger, for she started to explain herself. "I've had the most amazing time today. I've had more fun playing hooky with you than I've had in years. I don't want this to end. I just want to enjoy the rest of tonight without thinking about him. Would that be okay?"

"Of course," Fitz said. "But you're going to have to think about this at some point." Olivia gave him a weary nod before positioning herself away from him, her hair becoming a veil to hide her face. Fitz took the time to peer over the side of their car, searching the crowd. They were much closer to the ground, and Fitz wasn't certain how Olivia would react if she saw Jake. He scanned the crowd, but much to his relief, Jakes's familiar face didn't stand out.

The ride stopped and the mechanical door of their car slid open. Fitz got out and, after a moment of hesitation, held his hand out for Olivia. She placed her palm on top of his, and he helped her out of the booth. She let go afterwards, and Fitz let his arm fall to his side. The Ferris wheel was close to the park's beach side exit and, instead of fighting the crowd, Fitz encouraged Olivia to head in that direction.

They walked along the beach in an awkward silence. What had been a cool, refreshing ocean breeze that afternoon was now chilling. Even with his jacket on, Fitz found himself shivering. Olivia wrapped her arms around herself in an attempt to keep warm. A burst of color followed by an echoing boom surprised them both. Fitz looked up, watching as the fireworks exploded in the night sky. Instead of being impressed, he found himself reciting which chemicals made up each color – iron oxide for red, copper sulfate for blue, and magnesium for the particularly bright white that made the crowd at the amusement park go wild.

Olivia wasn't watching the light show, either. Her gaze was trained on the ground below her, a frown on her lips. He thought about reaching out to her, but she was more than an arms length away from him, a stark contrast to the afternoon. He hung his head and spent the rest of their walk regretting what he had said to her about Jake.

/

Since Friday night, Olivia and Fitz hadn't talked much. They made small talk over meals, but for the most part attempted to avoid one another. It wasn't that they were mad at each other, but ever since he had brought up the divorce it felt like he was walking on eggshells around her. She hadn't minded; it had given her a chance to come to better terms with what was going on.

Olivia had managed to stay busy the entire weekend, catching up on her missed work. When she wasn't grading papers, she was sending out emails, planning a guest speaker's visit to the school. Even though it was Sunday evening, it felt like she hadn't gotten anywhere; there was still so much work to be done. She brought her fingers up to her temple, hoping to prevent the impending stress headache.

She heard a door creak open, and she listened as the padding feet made their way into the kitchen, where she was seated. She tried her hardest not to smile as Kaner perked up at his master's presence. The retriever wriggled his way over to Fitz, only to receive an absentminded pat on the head. "How's your work coming along?" she asked.

"I can't bring myself to do anymore. I honestly haven't the slightest idea how some of these students ended up in my class, much less the school. I thought we were supposed to be one of the top prep schools in the nation." He settled in the chair opposite her. "I know that I didn't give the students much time to write their lab reports, but some of them are just ridiculous. I don't understand how they can turn this stuff in and expect me to give them a good grade."

"Were there any decent reports?"

He ran a hand through his short hair and let out a dramatic sigh. "There were a few, I guess. But none were up to par with my previous classes. I just hope these students don't expect to have a career in biology."

"It's just the first lab report," she assured him. "I bet some of your students will improve on the next round. I wouldn't worry about it. You said it yourself; they didn't have a lot of time to polish up their reports. And I know that John's visit pushed the field trip to be weeks early, so they didn't have a chance to really think their experiments through."

He gave an indifferent shrug. "I guess so." He leaned back on his chair, stretching. "What are you doing? Are you still working?"

"I was, but I don't think I can handle looking at a computer screen for much longer."

"What do you say to taking a break? We could watch a movie." If she didn't know any better, she would have thought that he looked nervous proposing the idea to her.

She contemplated it a moment, uncertain if it was the right thing to do. She still had an overwhelming amount of work, and she hadn't even finished planning out Monday's lecture. But the longer she thought about it, the more Fitz fidgeted in his chair. She couldn't very well say no to him. She gave in, murmuring, "Sure, that sounds great."

"I have a lot of science-y movies in my collection, but I think you might be able to find one or two you wouldn't mind watching. You could go pick a couple out while I make some popcorn? Then we can narrow down the choices together."

Olivia acquiesced, wandering into his living room. He hadn't exactly told her where to find his DVD collection, so she ended up opening several cabinets before finding the right one. She settled down next to it, pulling out the boxes. Much to her dismay, she didn't recognize a single title in the first stack she pulled out. By the time she got to the third row of DVD's, there were only a handful she recognized, and none that she had an interest in seeing. She was about to leave it up to Fitz to find one to watch when she spotted The Princess Bride. It wasn't something she had seen before, but the cover was enough to interest her.

Fitz had asked her to pick out more than one movie, so she grabbed a few at random. She had just managed to put all of them away when Fitz came into the living room carrying a large bowl of popcorn. She settled onto the couch next to him and held out the movie choices. He eyed them critically.

"Trainspotting, Olivia? Do you even know what that movie is about?" He set the movie down, chuckling. "Was the Princess Bride the only one you were actually interested in watching?" She nodded, embarrassed. "It's a great movie," he reassured her. "I'm glad you chose it."

He got up to put the movie into the DVD player. When he sat back down on the couch with the remote, he was right next to Olivia. The only thing separating them was the bowl of popcorn. Olivia tried her hardest not to tense up, or move away. The blue screen faded, and the commercials for now ancient movies flickered onto the screen. Fitz skipped to the menu and started the movie.

He reached for the popcorn bowl just as she did. Her hand shot back to her side, and she waited until Fitz had scooped up a handful before doing the same. She didn't let her mind dwell on it, instead focusing on the movie. The characters were all personable, and she caught herself laughing as they moved through their humorous adventure.

Halfway through the movie, Olivia needed a break to wash the buttery residue from her hands. Fitz thoughtfully paused the movie, and went to throw away the unfinished bowl of popcorn. He was already seated on the couch when she returned. She paused, wondering if it was appropriate to sit so close to him again. She took her chances, settling onto the cushion next to him. They weren't quite touching, but she was close enough to feel his body heat.

As the movie continued to play, Olivia found herself unable to concentrate. His hand was dangerously close to hers; a few more inches and they would be touching. She knew he wouldn't try to, not after Friday night. She slid her hand closer to his, her heart pounding. Would he be upset if she tried to hold his hand?

He jumped when her fingers met the top of his hand. She pulled away, turning a bright red. A few seconds later, she felt his fingers grab hers. He pulled their intertwined hands onto the couch between them. She ran her thumb along the top of his, finding herself smiling at the absurdity of the situation.

He didn't let go of her hand until the credits began to roll across the screen. When he did, she looked up at him, upset at the loss of contact. His face was centimeters away from her own; she could smell his cologne. Her eyes slid shut and she tilted her head up, her lips parting for the inevitable kiss.

He pressed his lips gently to hers. She responded eagerly, her heart pounding so furiously she was sure Fitz could hear it. His fingers tangled in her hair as his mouth worked over hers. He moved his head and began to kiss the side of her neck.

It took less than a second for her panic to set in. Fear coursed through her veins. "Fitz, stop." He was in the midst of pressing another kiss on her neck, but paused when he heard the terror in her voice. "Stop, please stop," she begged. "I'm so sorry, it's too soon." She pushed his hands off of her, and jumped off the couch. She rushed up the stairs and retreated to her bedroom, locking the door behind her.

 _A/N: Hi! Thank you for all of the reviews over the past week or so. Sorry for the lack of updates... midterms are next week, along with learning all 206 bones and the features of them before Thursday- so much fun. *sighs* #nursingschool_

 _I hope you are all having an incredible week. One more day until Scandal Thursday! :) Let me know what you guys thought of the chapter. I thought I would get one posted before the next 48 hours of practically no sleep hits me. I appreciate every single one of them. xoxo_


	9. Chapter 9

_It has been awhile. School has been kicking my butt! Enjoy.._.

Olivia sat against the window, the glass cool against her skin. She was supposed to be reading Wuthering Heights, but all she could think about was Fitz. She hadn't meant to run away; it was an irrational moment of panic and she found herself regretting it. It was a ridiculous notion, but for a split second, she had been convinced it was Jake kissing her. She shuddered at the thought.

She had heard Fitz get ready for bed a while ago; she had half expected him to knock on her door, to make sure she was okay, but he hadn't even come down her side of the hallway. She pressed her forehead against the glass, letting out a frustrated groan.

She watched as a car came to a stop on the opposite side of the street. The headlights turned off, and Olivia waited for the driver to get out of the car. Five minutes passed, and she began to grow uncomfortable. Somebody should have gotten out of the car by now. Her mind raced over the possibilities. She brushed off the ridiculous notion of a drug deal, and was left with nothing.

The car had parked in the shadows, but as Olivia continued to watch the unusual sight her eyes adjusted. She could make out the front end of the car – a miniature jaguar in the midst of pouncing on its prey. Olivia all but fell off the windowsill. It was a silver Jaguar. Jake.

Her light was on. He could probably see her from his angle in the car. She rushed away from the window, grasping at her robe and taking short, frantic breaths. She had to get to Fitz.

She rushed down the hallway, straight to his room. She pounded on the door, hoping that he wasn't asleep. Before he had finished inviting her inside, she was crossing the threshold and collapsing into his arms.

"Olivia, what is it?" he asked, his brow furrowing.

"He's outside."

Before she could even comprehend what was happening, Fitz had deposited her onto the bed and was rushing out of the bedroom door, Kaner close behind him. Olivia pushed herself off the mattress and followed after the two. By the time she got outside, the car was gone. She leaned against the door frame and wrapped her arms around herself. Her breath was visible in the cool air.

Fitz walked up the driveway, Kaner trailing sullenly behind him. As he got closer, Olivia stepped out to meet him. He opened his arms and she fell into his embrace. "Are you okay?" he asked, rubbing circles on her back. "What happened?"

"I'm fine, I guess." She pressed her head against his chest. "He pulled up maybe ten minutes ago. At first I didn't think anything of it – I thought maybe it was just somebody here to visit your neighbor. When he didn't get out of the car, I had a closer look. It's the same car he drives. Oh god, Fitz, how did he find us? Has he been following us?"

"I don't know," Fitz murmured. There was an edge to his voice. Olivia pulled away from him, confused. He took the opportunity to pull her inside, into the heat and away from the neighbor's prying eyes. "By the time I got out here, he was already driving away. Oliver chased after him." He shut the door behind them, making sure to turn both locks. "You didn't answer my first question, not really. Are you sure you're okay?"

Her face crumpled. As hard as she fought to hold back the tears, Fitz's concerned tone brought her over the edge. She hated herself for seeming so weak in front of him. Jake used to hate when she cried. He would get so mad at her. At that thought, she only managed to make herself sob harder. Fitz looked like he was completely lost; he tried to comfort her, press kisses against her hair and whisper soothing words, but it only made matters worse. She could barely breathe.

Fitz grabbed onto her shoulders, startling her out of her panic attack. "Olivia, you need to calm down. Would you like for me to call the police? Maybe they can track him down." She shook her head frantically. "Okay, then would you like a cup of tea?" She paused to contemplate it, and Fitz looked relieved. "How about I make a pot, and you can have some if you'd like."

He guided her into the kitchen and set her down at a bar stool. He went about filling the kettle and putting it onto the stove. When he was done, he went to sit next to Olivia. "Are you feeling a little better now?" She gave the tiniest nod of her head. "Liv, you shouldn't be so worried. Yes, he found us, but that was to be expected. What's important to take away from this is that he stayed in his car. As soon as he saw me, he took off. He wanted to see if you were alone. But you're not. You have me, and I'm going to protect you."

He went to turn off the howling kettle and poured them each a mug of the boiling water. He placed a tea bag in each and handed one to her. "Do you think you'd be able to sleep at all?"

"No," she said. She wrapped her hands around the hot mug, reveling in the heat. A thought occurred to her. "And I'm not skipping school tomorrow."

"Of course not. I wasn't even going to suggest that. But you do need to get sleep tonight; you can't fall asleep on your students."

She tensed. "I won't be able to close my eyes," she said. "There's no point in trying to sleep. I'll just have nightmares." He grabbed hand quietly guided her up the stairs. She stopped at his doorway, but he tugged her inside. "What are you doing?"

"We're going to sleep."

"In the same bed?" She hadn't meant for her voice to sound so small and pathetic. He gave her an endearing smile.

"Yes, in the same bed." He set his tea on the nightstand and pulled off his robe, leaving him in a t-shirt and plaid pajama bottoms. Olivia followed his example. He climbed onto the bed and patted the spot next to him. She slid under the covers, but didn't scoot closer to him.

Fitz had left the door open a crack, and Kaner's snuffling nose pushed it open further. He padded to Olivia's side of the bed and, only after a brief moment of hesitation, leapt onto it. He settled between the two humans, oblivious to all that had transpired. Olivia buried her face into his fur and closed her eyes, hoping that she could at least get a few hours of sleep.

 **/**

It was already four o'clock, and Fitz had hardly seen Olivia today. He had forgotten that their lunch schedules were different, so he had rushed to the office at twelve only to discover she had already left. He was curious and a little worried to hear how her first day back went. His final class was done fifteen minutes before hers, so he managed to not so subtly place himself in front of her classroom door.

He stepped in just as the students began to file out. Olivia was at the podium, gathering her notes. She smiled when she saw him. "Hi," he blurted out, grinning back. Before she could sling her bag across her shoulder, he grabbed it from her. She blushed as she realized he intended to carry it for her. He held the door and she slipped through, murmuring a habitual 'thank you.'

He took a moment to study her. "Did you have a good day?"

"A lot better than I expected," she admitted. "The students seemed relieved to have me back. Apparently their substitute made them do work I hadn't assigned. They weren't happy about that at all, and I guess it showed; the sub wrote me a negative letter." Fitz chuckled. "It's nice to get back into the swing of things though, you know? I was able to get some great discussions going in my classes."

They made their way down the stairs and out of the building. It was an exceptionally windy day out, and the fallen leaves swirled around their feet as they made their way to the office. "I gave my students back their lab reports," Fitz said.

Olivia raised an eyebrow. "How did that go over?"

"Let's just say I'll be getting calls tonight from angry parents." He kicked at a leaf. "I knew they would be upset, so I tried giving them a pep talk before I handed the reports out. I thought I did a good job making them understand it was only the first report, that there was room for improvement, but I still had half my students complain to me about how unfair my grading was. I think I even made one girl cry." Olivia gave him a horrified look, and he tried his hardest to at least appear upset.

"What was the highest score you gave out?"

"I don't remember the exact number, but I think it was close to a seventy. I honestly can't believe some of my students. They demanded that I curve the reports; why would I do that? None of them are going to get better if I just hand them A's."

"If I went to Westside I would be scared to have you as my Biology professor. I'm terrible at any sort of science; I just barely passed what I had to take in college. I don't know how I would handle getting a C in an eleventh grade Biology class – this is the year universities look at their transcripts. It's no wonder you made someone cry." He laughed, and she gave him an incredulous glare.

"I'm not actually going to count this first report as a grade," he admitted. "I just need them to think that, until they've submitted the next one." Her relieved smile was all the indication he needed to know that he had garnered her approval.

After being out in the cold, the building seemed entirely too hot. Fitz hastily undid the zipper of his coat, already flustered from the dramatic changes in temperature. As Olivia opened the office door, she broached the subject of dinner. "I know you've made everything since I started staying at your house, but I was hoping that tonight you'd let me cook for you, to show how grateful I am. Is there anything in particular you would like? I was thinking some sort of soup, since it's so cold outside. Maybe beef?"

Fitz made his way over to his desk. "Beef soup sounds amazing," he agreed. "I don't think I have all the ingredients, so we'd have to stop at the grocery store on the way home. Would that be okay?" He didn't get a response. "Olivia?" He looked up, and instantly paled.

She was standing at her desk, holding a piece of paper in one hand and grasping the desk for support with the other. "What is it?" he asked, rushing to her side. She wordlessly handed him the paper.

 _You don't get to play house with anyone but me, Olivia. It's time for you to come home where you belong._

His hands tore the note into shreds, and he dropped it into the trashcan. He had the overwhelming urge to punch something; a wall, Jake. He stood over the wastebasket, his fists clenched in anger. How did Jake get into their office? He thought he had locked it. A pitiful cry jolted him from his thoughts, and he spun around just in time to watch as the first of her tears marred her face.

She was so emotionally raw that he was scared to touch her. Fitz took a cautious step forward. She looked up at him, her jaw trembling. A tear slipped down her cheek. Within seconds she had wrapped herself in his arms. He pulled her close, pressing a kiss to her forehead. This wasn't supposed to feel like a routine.

"I don't care how long it takes, you're staying with me until he's out of your life for good," he told her. She nodded against his chest. He took in a shaking breath, realizing that he would have to bring up a divorce again. She couldn't hide forever; eventually she would have to meet Jake head on. For now, though, he had to focus on the present. "Do you need anything at your house? Do you have enough clothes?" If she were to stay with him, she would need more than just one suitcase full of clothing.

Olivia's house was on the opposite side of town. Fitz tried his best to memorize the directions, but after the fourth turn he was confused, and a little bit lost. In all his time here, he hadn't even realized that this part of town had been urbanized; he thought that it had all been woods. Her home was in a newer, less private development. She pulled her car into the garage and waited for him to catch up.

Though it would have made more sense to go through the main entrance, Olivia ushered him in through the door inside the garage. It opened up into her spacious kitchen. Fitz took a moment to admire the decorous atmosphere before hurrying to catch up to Olivia. She was already two rooms ahead of him, and advancing quickly to the staircase. He made ready to follow her up, but she stopped him with a hand to his chest. "Why don't you stay down here, while I pack?" He couldn't argue, so he simply nodded his agreement.

Since she hadn't exactly given him something occupy himself with, he studied the pictures along her walls. Some were pictures of her and her family, while others were purely for decoration; she seemed to have a particular fascination with dancing. As he moved along the wall, he noticed that one of her photographs was askew. He brought his hands up to the frame, gently pulling it up and to the left.

He looked to the next spot on the wall, only to discover a gap, where a picture might have hung. He took a step forward, and his shoe crunched against something on the hardwood floor. Shattered glass. He peered into the next room over, uncertain of what he would find. He was undoubtedly sure that something would be amiss.

The foyer was, at best, chaotic. Furniture was overturned, and most, if not all, of Olivia's decorative vases and figurines were on the ground, broken into small, razor-sharp pieces. Fitz found himself rationalizing, hoping, that the nightmarish scene playing in his mind's eye was much worse than what had actually happened.

He couldn't let her clean this up. He wandered back to the kitchen, in search of a broom and dustpan. A few minutes later, he was back in the entryway, sweeping the shards of broken pottery into the pan. He used his fingers to pick up some of the larger pieces, gingerly tossing them into the trashcan. One piece was especially jagged, and it caught Fitz by surprise. The porcelain cut into the flesh of his index finger. He let out a yelp and cradled his finger. The sanguine liquid slid down the length of his hand and fell the floor.

He hadn't the slightest idea where the closest bathroom was, but before he could even begin to think about the closest place to find a band aid, there was a knock on the front door. Fitz stuffed his injured finger against the hem of his shirt, grateful that he had at least worn a dark color.

Even though he was almost positive it wasn't Jake, he opened the door with a hesitancy he wouldn't have deemed necessary just last week. An older woman stood on the stoop, a rolling pin in her hand. When she saw Fitz she raised the kitchen utensil, ready to strike. He raised an eyebrow and took a weary step back.

"Who are you?" The woman asked, inviting herself into the house. "You're not here to hurt her, are you?"

"What? Of course not. Who are you?"

"Susanne Davis, Olivia's next-door neighbor." She gave an unnecessary gesture in the direction of her house. "Are you her boyfriend?"

"I'm Fitz Grant. Olivia and I share an office at Westside Academy."

The woman visibly relaxed. "That's good to hear. I thought you were with that man that came by here last Tuesday night. He made such a racket, yelling at Olivia." She shook her head, disgusted.

"There is no good blood between that man and I," Fitz promised. As much as he despised busybodies, he wasn't stupid; he knew how important this woman's information was. He tried his best to make his smile charming. "It's such a relief to hear that Olivia has such wonderful, caring people as her neighbors. I can't tell you how worried I was, I thought she wouldn't be safe here by herself. But it's nice to know you and the rest of the neighborhood are keeping a watchful eye on her. "You'd never let her get hurt, would you?"

"Oh, no! Of course not." Susanne leaned in conspiratorially. "That's why when I heard their argument on Tuesday, I came running over. I'm so glad I was able to get over here so quickly. That man was hitting her! Lord knows what would have happened if I had arrived even two minutes later."

"How did you get him to leave?"

"I didn't do anything. As soon as he saw me he took off. I guess he was afraid I would call the police. I would have, too, if Olivia hadn't begged me not to. I don't know what's wrong with that girl. She had a bad cut on her forehead, but she wouldn't even let me take her to the hospital!"

"Thank you, Mrs. Davis. You may not know this, but you might saved her life." The woman flushed and opened her mouth to speak. For once, she was speechless. Fitz thought she looked absurd, opening and closing her mouth. "Did you come here to check up on Olivia? I'm so sorry I intercepted you." Susanne nodded. "She's busy right now, but she'll be down in a bit, if you'd like to wait in the kitchen."

"That's not necessary." She gave Fitz a pat on the arm. "I'll just come by later. It was nice to meet you, Mr. Grant."

"The pleasure was all mine." He shut the door behind her. It took him a moment to recover from all the information he had received. He leaned against the wall, his mind racing. He knew enough of the story to piece together what had happened, but Olivia would have to eventually fill in the cracks of his knowledge.

With Susanne gone, he was able to finally tend to his finger. By the time he had wrapped it up and finished cleaning the foyer, Olivia was down the stairs and ready to go. He wanted her to leave her car in the garage, but she was insistent that she drive hers to his house.

 _A/N: I hope you're all still enjoying this story. Please review and let me know! :)_


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